She said: "I'm so proud of my performance tonight. I gave it my very best.

"It's been an incredible experience for me. I am so grateful for everyone's love and support. The fans make Eurovision what it is; the biggest and the most inclusive and open celebration of music in the world.

"Eurovision is a family, and I am proud to be part of it."

The BBC said an average of 6.9 million viewers watched the show on BBC One in the UK although numbers peaked at 8.1 million.

Viewers watched as the stage invader, dressed in a black and red bandana and slogan t-shirt promoting a book available on Amazon, accosted SuRie half-way through her performance. He was taken into police custody shortly after being rushed from the stage by security guards.

A man rushes the stage (Armando Franca/AP)

A man dressed in the same bandana and t-shirt stormed the stage of the National Television Awards, where he was ordered off by host Dermot O'Leary.

Northern Irish talk show host Stephen Nolan also claimed the same stage invader crashed his programme last year.